The City has complete control through the Planned Development zoning process. The Planning and Zoning Commission has the ability to recommend and the City Council can approve a Planned Development that does not meet the criteria listed under either a suburban- or urban-style Planned Development per Chapter 2, Art. II, Part 5, Sec. 2-133:

“4. The Commission may recommend and Council may approve a PD that does not meet all of the above minimum requirements if they find that the proposed PD establishes a high-quality development and offers unique or special benefits to the community.

“5. At the discretion of the Commission and Council, additional requirements based on site specific conditions may be applied to a GDP and FDP.”

These two subsections allow for discretion on the part of the Planning and Zoning Commission and City Council when evaluating PD zoning applications. A PD enables the creation of customized land uses and regulations. This provides the ability to ensure that these developments are compatible with nearby areas; it’s a process that standard zoning can’t accommodate. Planned Developments include a site layout plan that provides a level of certainty regarding future development of property. Customized height regulations were created for PDs to enhance the existing buffer between the development and adjacent single-family residential areas. Examples include the Fluor development and commercial areas north of U.S. Highway 59 in Telfair.